The book Humility

After reading the book Humility, post an initial thread to include the following (use separate bolded section titles or paragraphs to break up the post showing where each point is addressed):

Approximately, what percentage of the book was read in preparation for this discussion?

What is Murray’s central thesis in the book? Defend your answer.

In chapter 2, Murray writes, “If humility be the first, the all-including grace of the life of Jesus, if humility be the secret of His atonement, then the health and strength of our spiritual life will entirely depend upon our putting this grace first too, and making humility the chief thing we admire in him, the chief thing we ask of him, the one thing for which we sacrifice all else.”
Do you agree or disagree with this statement and how is his argument here developed through the rest of the book?
Whether you agree or not with his argument, wherein Scripture could someone argue that “humility be the first, the all-including grace of the life of Jesus”?

Which chapter did you find most convicting and why?

Which chapter did you find most encouraging and why?

Oviposition, a commonly used term to describe “laying of eggs”, is broken down into two stages, pre-oviposition and post-oviposition. Pre-oviposition comprises of “all the behaviors and factors involved in the selection of, or attraction to, an oviposition site and oviposition itself” (Downes and Lancaster 2013). Individuals locate suitable sites for their offspring by seeking visual and chemical cues throughout the environment; even the behavior through which these individuals lay their eggs depends on environmental factors. Post-oviposition occurs after the eggs have left the female and involves several different “strategies for ensuring that development of the embryo can proceed” (Downes and Lancaster 2013). Some examples include camouflaging the egg to resemble its site, “devices for attaching eggs to substrates”, and nutrient and gas exchange within the egg (Downes and Lancaster 2013). The site of oviposition is determined by behavioral and environmental cues that increase the probability of the offspring’s survival and the parent’s fitness. This is why the significance of where the organism selects to oviposit his or her offspring is crucial for their offspring’s survival, and his or her fitness. Laying eggs is crucial part of the life cycle for oviparous animals. “An important factor affecting the life-history of an organism is parental investment in reproduction: reproductive decisions are almost invariably costly” (Kotiaho and Paukku 2008). Our experiment is focused on pre-oviposition by measuring whether or not bean beetles prefer small or large lima beans to oviposit on. Oviposition preference is dependent on size, small or large, of a lima bean.  If bean beetles prefer large lima beans, will we see any eggs deposited on small lima beans? Or, if there is no preference, will we see near-equal numbers for both categories?

Sample Solution

I read approximately 80% of Humility by Andrew Murray. Murray’s central thesis in the book is that through humility, an individual can achieve true spiritual growth and maturity. He argues that having a humble heart is the key to accessing God’s power and living a life of true holiness. Murray goes on to explain how Jesus lived his life full of humility, which should be emulated by all believers. His point is that if we want to experience real faith and a deep connection with God then we need to practice humility in our everyday lives—especially when faced with difficult circumstances or times of trial. He emphasizes the importance of self-denial, meekness and submission as part of this process. In essence, Murray believes that it is only through genuine humility that we can truly grow closer to God and live according to His will.